, January 2011). The way juveniles are handled is based on the Illinois Prisoner Review Board, which is "…a body created to decide the fates of adult prisoners in correctional facilities," Hassakis writes in the ISBA magazine article. Very few youths have their parents with them at their parole hearings, and moreover, "…even fewer have an adult present for parole revocation hearings" (Hassakis, p. 2).

"After nearly six months of observations" that were conducted by the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission, the report asserts that "…no youth has had an attorney or any legal help in making the case that he or she is ready for release" to the parole system (Hassakis, p. 2). The ISBA article asks a highly pertinent question: What young person at age 15 has the wherewithal to represent himself before a panel of adults that will decide whether he is ready for parole -- or "remains...
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